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Topic: Foxes (Read 3438 times)

I have a pretty healthy fox population around my house. Between myself and my neighbor we have identified 3 distinct individual grey foxes. This is a residential area but no so residential I could squeeze off a few rounds of a .22 safely and responsibly.

Do you think I should thin this population or leave them be? Will they be a problem for my bees like skunks? I know they are a threat to neighborhood cats and small dogs but I am also concerned about rabies. I actually knew a family who's little girl was attacked by a rabid fox and had to get rabies treatment from it.

Mason, I am south of you in Spalding county and am quite familiar with our fox populations. They are doing quite well as shown by the recent outbreak of rabies in the Metro. In the predator and mezopredator species disease tends to be the limiting factor in population control and when one sees an outbreak it is almost always an indicator of high population numbers. Among the canines (coyote/fox) the main culprit is sarcoptic mange, which I see on a regular basis throughout the metro area. In raccoons and to a lesser degree in the fox it's distemper, which I have not seen in years due to the low population numbers of raccoon in this area. Very rarely will one see an out break of feline paraluekemia in our bobcats due to their solitary habits (not low numbers as we have our share) but in feral house cats it is a major killer due to their colony type habits.Rabies is just one of many diseases added into the mix and lke I said when it shows up it will sweep through all of our predator and mezopredator species whose numbers are high or those that vcome into contact with infect individuals. So far this year I have seen reported both red and grey fox, raccoon, feral house cats, coyotes and skunk. The normal course for the disease is to see increased cases risinf in the spring and erly summer (as it did here) due to infection during winter denning and late winter breeding season bringing infected animals in contact with non infected with the disease burning through a population into the denning baby rearing season and tapering off into the fall and winter as the animals disperse in late summer. Then depending on populations and lingering vector sources it may reemerge the following season, though usually to a lesser degree. It waits to be seen what next spring brings us.I fear that this may end up being a recurring theme throughout the metro due to the artificial conditions we have created that support these animals. Our urban habitats have become a mecca for these animals as our practices are creating ample habitat and food source opportunities for them.I hate to give suggestions for you considering the line of work that I'm in, I am a Nuisance Wildlife Control Operator, and the kneejerk reaction is CALL ME. On the real side of things I or someone like me would be more than glad to come up there and set traps for these animals and I can promise you if I set out to catch them I will but the fact remains that without addressing the habitat and foodsources issues I would only be removing easily replaced animals. Ooops, there I go shooting down business but that's the gold plated truth. Now if you would like I can offer to help you address the issues that the fox are finding attractive in your area. First thing that comes to mind is that grey fox are a creature of brushy areas whereas reds like the open country (I regularly trap them off of golf courses). Both species of fox are rodent hunters so try to locate the possible rodents in your area with an idea to eliminating them. The short list of rodents common in this are are Roof rats (often found in or around structures especially in the upper areas), wood rats, white footed mice, voles (two species), various new world rats and mice such as the hispid cotton and old field mice, moles (not a rodent but included here as a food source).Consider too, that when addressing rodents they too have their own habitat and foodsource issues to contend with. Long and short of it is to consider the holistic approach to wildlife control or you may be setting out on a never ending quest to shoot everything that moves.Of course that said if you so desire I am quite capable of catching these fox so give me a call sometime, LOL Seriously I will be glad to discuss this if you want I only charge for services that burn gas, talk is free.In the meantime keep your small pets up, quit feeding dogs and cats on the outside and if you do remove the feed at night, seal your garbage cans tight or better yet keep them inside until collection day, take down the bird feeders (remember the rodents?), and everytime a predator is seen be sure to instill the fear of God in them by being the dominant predator that we are. Good luck.

It seems like every time you hear of a people (or a horse) getting attacked by a rabid animal, it seems like it is a fox. But I am more scared of the coons than I am a fox around here. I see no problem in using a .22 for the foxes. Just wait until between Dec. 1 and Feb 28. You might as well do it legal :-D. Or SSS but I did not say that. My dad has a place over on Lake Weiss and a couple of years ago, the neighborhood had a pet fox that made the rounds and everybody fed. Then everybody noticed him starting to look ruff. He went downhill from there. Bald spots and sick looking. I think someone helped him out instead of letting him suffer. But back to the coons. A couple of years ago we drained the pond. Right after that, I started looking all my hens, the turkeys, all my animals. I trapped 24 coons out that winter. Scary huh? Use the .22.

AllenF, you are far luckier than we are in the metro when it comes to the coonies. South of here is crawling with ringtails, north of here you have to look long and hard to find them. I chart my calls and I can tell you that my coon calls are limited to a narrow band along the hooch and around lanier (I asumme the same of altoona but I don't go there).

I'm in the sticks here for the most part. 10 minutes from Paulding Forest to give you an idea. But we have really never had deer around me until the past couple of years. They use to stay in the big woods. Stayed away from the houses. This year they ate the garden to pieces. In about 2 weeks I hope they come out during the day for the rut. I set a ladder stand up in the pasture for the first time ever. Maybe :).

Not the time it would take to skin, flesh and stretch them. Even in good years fox will rarely break the $20 mark down here. A couple of years ago there was a run on the greys and the best were fetching somewhere around $23 put up (that's skinned, fleshed, stretched and dried) AND shipped to the auction houses in Canada less than half that in the round (whole animal, the buyer does all the put up work) if you could find a buyer. We have not had an active fur buyer in Georgia in almost a decade. The nearest local fur auction to us is Bulls Gap, TN or one in MS. This year you would be lucky to get $12-$15 put up and shipped. I talked to a guy this week who gambled on raccoon last season and put up over a hundred on rumors of a good market. He ended up tossing them in the ditch.The going joke is that southern fur doesn't have any hair on it.

I don't do fur, I get paid to trap them them on the front end. Nothing for me on the back end to waste my time on. It's crying shame to as I just tossed a real nice otter this week.

It seems that my neighborhood has a booming wildlife population these days. I know we have a thriving raccoon population, there are so many squirrels it's creepy, and I can stand on my front porch and watch scores of chipmunks running every direction in the evenings. It's pretty crazy. I grew up a few miles from where I am now and never saw deer. Last year we had an 8 point buck in my driveway. For those of you who have or know of Marietta GA I live less than a mile from the Big Chicken. There is just not that much open woods and the wildlife seems to be using power lines etc to navigate through residential areas and getting more and more brazen around people.

Good information. I am going to set up a stand in my living room, use a decoy (feather on a stick) and a predator call to see about getting a few out of the loop. I have a Sheraton Silver Streak pellet gun. (technically not a firearm) It should be enough providing I hot a vital area. I don't have a problem waiting until December. I also have a couple of traps. I'm thinking a dead chipmunk would be good bait.

I have always been told by the old timers that if you see a fox during the day it's rabid. The fact that we are having regular sitings suggest to me there are plenty of Fox in the area. It's a matter of time before one goes rabid and someone gets hurt. Game on.....

Look up Colibri .22 shells. Powderless. No where near as loud and also a limited range as well.

That is what I use for squirrels. My big air rifle is louder to shoot. But you do hear it when the .22 hits the squirrel. 450 fps. Very slow. Keep the shots with in 50 feet due to the drop. We set up the steel targets off the back porch just to shoot. Everybody in the neighborhood just hears ping, ping, ping. But the lead does go through the animals. I think they will be a kill on the fox, just not a fast one.

Look up Colibri .22 shells. Powderless. No where near as loud and also a limited range as well.

That is what I use for squirrels. My big air rifle is louder to shoot. But you do hear it when the .22 hits the squirrel. 450 fps. Very slow. Keep the shots with in 50 feet due to the drop. We set up the steel targets off the back porch just to shoot. Everybody in the neighborhood just hears ping, ping, ping. But the lead does go through the animals. I think they will be a kill on the fox, just not a fast one.

I havent heard of powderless 22s but I get the picture that they're subsonic. since I began to learn about firearms I've always been a bigger believer in accuracy with enough punch and penetration than being a mediocre marksman not bothering to improve because the big bullet can crack an engine block.edit: I would guess it's really pricey to work out a really good feel for the arc of a subsonic 22, but I'm betting they'd have plenty of energy at 100 yards.

There are a lot of subsonic shells out there, but most are in the 750 to 950 fps range. Some can be pretty accurate. I have tried most all of them. (we like to shoot, but don't need to bother the neighbors.) If I need to shoot flat and far out there, I grab the .22 yellow jackets, but other wise we don't need the lead to fly a mile and a half. Google Aguila Super Colibri. Not the best, just quiet.

I recently handled a ruger 10/22 with an integral suppressor that looked like nothiong more than a standard 10/22 with a bull barrel and was lighter than most. It was sweet to say the least, now if only I could justify the purchase.

My Walther P22 is all set up for a suppressor...I've been waiting for the lotto to pay off :-D

Scott

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Thats the most expensive stamp I own. And yes, it is just a stamp stapled onto a piece of paper. The paperwork isnt terrible-my job lessened the return time. It usually takes several months for ATF approval and I got mine back in about 2 weeks. I have the integral 10/22 and it is the berries. With the correct loads, you can hear the firing pin strike the primer. If I had it to do all over again, I would have just purchased a threaded can-that way it could be interchanged with any gun (same caliber) with a threaded barrel. One last thing on the ATF paperwork, they can show up at anytime day or night and request to see the weapon and your paperwork. Ive had mine since 94 and they never have but there is a first time for everything.

The noise won't be a problem. I just need to find the time to set up and see if I can call something up to the decoy. It should be fun. Setting up my LazyBoy stand and maybe I can get something this weekend.